Combined tackle box and seat



Dec. 2, 1941. R. A. DUNNAM COMBINED TACKLE BOX AND SEAT v Filed March 5, 1941 IN VEN TOR R/C/l/MD A DUN/VAM ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 2, 1941 COMBINED- TACKLE BOX AND SEAT Richard A. Dunnam, Dayton, Ohio, assignor of I thirty-five per cent to Royal S. Jenkins and twenty-five per cent to Garlin J. Musick, both of Dayton, Ohio Application March '3, 1941, Serial No. 381,421

lit-Claims.

This invention .relates to a combinedtackle box and seat and one object of the invention is to provide a container for fishing tackle, foodand the like, which may be quickly and easily con tainer will be readily accessible to the occupant of the seat. I

A further object of the invention is to provide such a device having a hinged back and of such construction that a single fastening device will retain the seat back in its folded position and will retain the closure or closures for the container in a closed position.

A further object of the invention is to provide such a device having means for supporting a fishing rod.

A further object of the invention is to provid a strong durable device of simple construction which can be produced at low cost.

Other objects of the invention may appear as the device is described in detail.

In the accompanying drawing Fig. 1 is a' perspective view of the invention showing the seat back in its folded position; Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the seat in its upright or extended position; and Fig. 3 is a vertical section substantially central of the device.

In this drawing I have illustrated one embodiment of my invention and have shown the same a as designed primarily for use by fishermen but it will be understood that the invention may take various forms and may be used for variou purposes either with or without modification.

In that embodiment here illustrated the device comprises a container 5 having a bottom wall 6,

side walls I and 8, a front wall 9, a back wall I0, and a top wall II, said top wall being adapted to form a seat and being preferably curved or otherwise shaped to provide a comfortable seat. A'seat back I2 is mounted on the container for movement into a folded position adjacent to and substantially parallel with the top wall II, or into an upright position in which it extends upwardly from the rear portion of the top wall II. This seat back may take variousforms and may be In the particular form here illustrated it I5 is secured to a suppbrting rod I6 rigidly attached,-.-as by welding, to the side members of the U-shaped frame at points spaced some little distance from the pivotal axis of the U-shapedframe, therefore the member I5 is of a width slightly less than the fore and aft width of the top' wall II of the container. The seat back may be supported in its folded position substantially parallel with the top wall I I in any suitable manner and, in the present instance,the part I5 of the seat back rests upon the upwardly curved forward portion ll of the top wall I,I. Any suitable means may be provided for supporting the seat back in its upright position and for positively limiting the rearward movement of the same under pressure exerted thereon by the occupant of the seat. In the arrangement here shown I have rigidly secured to the side members of the U-shaped frame I3, as by welding, arms I8 which project somewhat beyond the inturned parts or pintles I4 of the frame. These arms are provided with inturned portions arranged to contact the rear wall II) of the container below the axis of the seat back when the latter is moved to its upright position and thus firmly support the same in that position. In the arrangement here shown the inturned portions of the arms I8 are formed in a single piece, or transverse rod, I9, and the arms are so shaped that when the rod I9 is in contact with the back wall of the con- 1 tainer the seat back will be supported in a slightly inclined position, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3. The arms I8 project beyond the axis of the seat back such a distance that when the seat back in its folded position the rod I9 will lie close to the upper edge of the back wall I0 of the container, so that no part of the means for supporting the seat back in its upright position projects a, material distance beyond the wall of the container when'the seat back is in its foldedposition, as shown in Fig. 1.

The space within the container may be utilized to contain fishing tackle, equipment of any kind, food or the like, and is preferably divided into a plurality of compartments so that commodities of several kinds may be separately stored therein. It is desirable that the occupant of the seat should have access to'the interior of the container while seated on the latter, this being particularly true as to fishing tackle and the like. Therefore one wall of the container is provided with an opening through which access may be had to the interior of the container and suitable closures are provided for this opening. Preferably the opening is provided in the front wall 9 of the container and, as here shown, a drawer," is slidably mounted in the upper portion of the container on slideways 2| for movement through the opening in the front wall so that it can be readily withdrawn between the legs of the occupant on the seat. to render its contents available. This drawer is provided with a front end wall 22 which extends slightly beyond the side walls of the drawer and at its ends overlaps flanges 23 extending inwardly from the side walls I and 8 and forming parts of the front wall 9. The interior of the drawer is in the present instance divided into a plurality of relatively small oompartments 24 of a character adapted to contain fishing tackle.

To provide access to the space in the container beneath the drawer 20 the front wall 9 is provided with a door 25 and, in the present arrangement, this door is hinged at its lower edge, at 26, onto the upper edge of a part of the front wall which extends entirely across the container and provides a permanent closure for the lower part of the space within the container. The hinged closure 25 may be secured in its closed position, as shown in Fig. 3, in any suitable manner but preferably the front end wall 22 of the drawer 20 is provided with a downwardly extending lip 26a adapted to overlap the upper edge of the door when both the door and the drawer are in their closed positions and thus retain the door in its closed position as long as the drawer is closed. The space beneath the drawer may con stitute a single compartment or a plurality of compartments and in the present instance it is provided with a partition 21 which is removably supported on angle bars 28 secured to the side walls of the container adjacent the point at which the door 25 is hinged, thus dividing the space into two compartments, the uppermost of which may constitute a receptacle for foods or beverages and the lower portion of which may constitute a refrigerating chamber. Inasmuch as this lower compartment is enclosed by permanent walls, with the exception of the partitions 21, ice may be placed therein without danger of leakage. The partition 21 is of such a character that when removed from the container it may be placed upon and supported by the drawer 20 when the latter has been partially withdrawn from the container, thus providing a table which may be used for various purposes.

The device is provided with a suitable handle by means of which it may be carried and preferably this handle is secured to the seat back l2, as shown at 29. With the handle secured to the seat back it is of course necessary that means be provided for securing the seat back in its folded position and in the arrangement here shown the seat back has secured thereto a fastening device or hasp 30 adapted to embrace a staple 3| secured to the front wall 22 of the drawer 20. A padlock or other retaining device may be inserted through the staple after the hasp has been placed in operative engagement therewith to retain the hasp in engagement with the staple. The front portion of the seat back projects slightly beyond the highest point of the seat, upon which it rests, and has a slight resiliency and the hasp is so arranged that in placing the same in operative engagement with the staple the front portion of the seat back will be slightly flexed in a downward direction, so that when released it will tend to move the hasp upwardly and thus retain the same in firm engagement with the staple. Consequently when the device is to be moved short distances, and when it is not necessary to lock the same, it is only necessary to place the hasp in operative engagement with the staple.

When the device is to be-used as a combined seat and tackle box for fishermen it is also deslrable that it should be provided with means for supporting one or more fishing poles. For this purpose one or both of the side walls of the container may be provided with a vertical socket 32 adapted to receive a downwardly extending part or pintle 33 of a rod supporting device 34. This device is here shown in the form of a bracket formed from a metal rod or the like and extends forwardly from its pivotal axis and is provided at its forward end with means for supporting a fishing rod thereon. In the arrangement shown the forward portion of the rod is bent upwardly and then forwardly, as shown at 35, and the extreme forward portion of the rod is then curved downwardly and bent laterally to form a transverse seat 35 on which a portion of the fishing rod may rest. At a point to the rear of the part 35 the rod is bent upwardly and then laterally to form an overhanging seat 31 to engage the rear end portion of the rod and retain the latter on the seat 36. The parts are so proportioned that when the rod is in supporting engagement with the seats 36 and 31 a reel on the rod will overhang and engage the part 35 of the supporting bracket and thus hold the rod against rotation on the seats and retain the reel in a position in which it can be readily grasped by the occupant of the seat. When the rod supporting device is not in use it may be stored within the interior of the container.

While I have shown and described one embodiment of my invention I wish it to be understood that I do not desire to be limited to the details thereof as various modifications may occur to a person skilled in the art.

Having now fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is:

1. A portable device of the character described comprising a container having a top wall adapted to form a seat, a seat back including a substantially U-shaped frame having its side members pivotally mounted on said container near the rear edge of said top wall and movable from a position substantially parallel with said top wall to an upright position, a stop device rigidly secured to said side members and having a part extending transversely to said side members and so arranged with relation thereto that it will be close to the rear edge of said top wall when said frame is substantially parallel with the latter and will engage said container below the pivotal axis of said frame when the latter is in said upright position, said container having in one wall thereof an opening through which access may be had to the interior thereof, and a closure for said opening.

2. A portable device of the character described comprising a container having a wall adapted to form a seat, a seat back hinged to said container near the rear edge of said top wall for movement into a position close to and substantially parallel with said top wall or into a position in which it extends upwardly from said top wall, said container having an opening in the front wall thereof, a movable closure for said opening, and cooperating parts carried by said seat back and said closure to retain said seat back in said substantially parallel position and to retain said closure in said closed position.

3. A portable device of the character described comprising a container having a wall adapted to form a seat, a seat back hinged to said container near the rear edge of said top wall for movement into a position close to and substantially parallel with said top wall or into a position in which it extends upwardly from said top wall, said container having an opening in the front wall there-v of, a movable closure for the lower portion of said opening, a drawer mounted in said container for movement through the upper portion of said opening and having a part to engage said closure and retain the latter in its closed position when said drawer is in its closed position, and means for retaining said drawer in its closed position.

4. A portable device of the character described comprising a container having a wall adapted to form a seat, a seat back hinged to said container near the rear edge of said top wall for movement into a position close to and substantially parallel with said top wall or into a position in which it extends upwardly from said top wall, said container having an opening in the front wall thereof, a movable closure for the lower portion of said opening, a drawer mounted in said container for movement through the upper portion of said opening and having a part to engage said closure and retain the latter in its closed position when said drawer is in its closed position, and cooperating parts carried by said seat back and said drawer to retain said seat back in said substantially parallel position and to retain said drawer in its closed position.

5. A portable device of the character described, comprising a container having a wall adapted to form a seat, a seat back hinged to said container near the rear edge of said top wall for movement into a position close to and substantially parallel with said top wall or into a position in which it extends upwardly from said top wall, said container having an opening in the front wall thereof, a movable closure for said opening, a fastening element secured to said closure, said seat back having a resilient portion, and a hasp secured to said resilient portion and adapted to embrace said fastening lement, said hasp being so arranged that the placing thereof in operative engagement with said fastening element will flex the resilient portion of said seat back and said hasp will be retained in operative engagement with said fastening element by the resiliency of said portion of said seat back, and a carrying handle secured to said seat back.

6. A portable device of the character described, comprising a container having upright walls and a top wall adapted to form a seat, a seat back mounted on said container for movement into a position close to and substantially parallel with said seat or into a position in which it extends upwardly from the rear portion of said seat, means to limit the rearward movement of said seat back, said container having an opening in an upright wall thereof through which the occupant of said seat may have access to the interior of said container, a closure for said opening movable to its open position by the occupant of said seat, means for rigidly connecting said seat back with said closure to retain said seat back in said substantially parallel position and retain said closure in its closed position, and a carrying handle connected with said seat back.

7. A portable device of the character described comprising a container having substantially vertical front, rear and side walls, and a top wall adapted to form a seat, a seat back having hinged connection with said container adjacent the rear edge of said seat for movement into a position close to and substantially parallel with said seat or into an upwardly extending position, means to limit the rearward movement of said seat back about said hinged connection, the front wall of the container being provided with an opening, a drawer mounted in said container for movement through a portion of said opening, and a movable closure for another portion of said opening, said drawer and said closure being so arranged that the occupant of said seat, may have access to-said draw'er or said closure by reaching between his legs. v

8. A portable device of the character described, comprising a container having a bottomwall located close to the surface on which the container is supported, a top wall adapted to form a seat and upright walls extending from said bottom wall to said top wall and of a height to support v said top wall at seat forming elevation and to provide the container with a. relatively large storage capacity, a seat back mounted on said container for movement to an upright position adjacent the rear edge of said top wall or to a forwardly extending position above and close to said top wall, means to limit the rearward movement of said seat back, an upright wall of said container having an opening arranged to enable the occupant of said seat to have access to the interior of said container, a closure for said opening movable to its open position by the occupant of said seat, and handle means connected with said container and so arranged that said container may be carried thereby in an upright position when said seat back is in said forwardly extending position.

9, A portable device of the character described, comprising a container having a bottom wall, upright walls and a top wall secured to said upright walls and adapted to form a seat, a seat back mounted on said container for movement to an upright position adjacent the rear edge of said top wall or tea forwardly extending position above and-close to said top wall, means to limit the rearward movement of; said seat back, one of said upright walls having an opening arranged to enable the occupant of said seat to have access to the interior of said container, a closure for said opening, means for firmly securing said seat back in said forwardly extending position, and a carrying handle connected with that side of said seat back which is uppermost when said seat back is secured in said forwardly extending position, to enable said container to be carried in an upright position.

10. A portable device of the character described, comprising a container having a bottom wall, substantially vertical front, rearand side walls and a top wall adapted to form a seat, a seat back having hinged connection with said container adjacent the rear edge of said top wall and movable to an upright position or to a forwardly extending position above and close to said top wall, means to limit the rearward movement of said seat back about said hinged connection, said front wall having a relatively large opening, a drawer mounted in said container for movement through the upper portion of said opening to an open position in front of said container, a removable partition dividing the interior of said container, below said drawer into two compartments, and a movable closure for that portion of said opening which is below said drawer.

RICHARD A. DUNNAM. 

